Melesina Trench
Melesina Chenevix Trench (22 March 1768 - 27 May 1827) was an Irish poet. Life Trench was born Melesina Chenevix in Dublin, the daughter of Philip Chenevix, by his wife Mary Elizabeth, daughter of Archdeacon Gervais, and granddaughter of Richard Chenevix, bishop of Waterford. She was brought up after the death of her parents by her grandfather, Bishop Chevenix, and her kinswoman, Lady Lifford, and after the death of the bishop in 1779 she went to live with her maternal grandfather, Archdeacon Gervais.Seccombe, 189. She developed great personal beauty, and on 31 Oct. 1786 she married Colonel Richard St. George of Carrick-on-Shannon and Hatley Manor, co. Leitrim, who died in Portugal only 2 years after the marriage. For 10 years she lived in great seclusion with her child, and it is not until 1798 that her deeply interesting journal commences. During 1799 and 1800 she travelled in Germany, mixing in the very best society, and noting many items of historical interest. From Berlin and Dresden she went to Vienna, of the society of which place she relates some curious anecdotes. At Dresden, on her return journey, she met Lord Nelson and Lady Hamilton. While in Germany she also met Rivarol, Lucien Bonaparte, and John Quincy Adams, the 6th president of the United States. In July 1802, after a short stay in England, Mrs. St. George landed from Dover at Calais, on what proved a 5 years' sojourn in France. At Paris on 3 March 1803 she married Richard Trench (1774-1860), the 6th son of Frederick Trench (1724–1797) of Moate, co. Galway. Henceforth in the record of her life the place of the journal is supplied by the charming letters to her husband and to her old friends in England and Ireland. After the rupture of the peace of Amiens her husband was detained in France by Napoleon, and was confined to the Loire district. She made repeated visits to Paris to urge his release, and in August 1805 she delivered in person a petition to Napoleon for a passport for her husband; but it was not until 1807 that the requisite document was obtained and the Trenches were enabled to make their way to Rotterdam, whence, after a stormy voyage, they reached England. At Dublin, in November, she met her old friend and correspondent, Mary Leadbeater, whom she had employed as almoner among her husband's tenants in Ireland. Leadbeater said of her: :My heart entirely acquits me of having been influenced by what I have heard of her rank and fortune. Far more prepossessing than these were the soft lustre of her beautiful black eyes, and the sweetness of her fascinating smile.... Providence had given her talents and dispositions calculated to promote the improvement and happiness of all around her, while her meekness and humility prevented the restraint of her superiority being felt, without taking from the dignity of her character. I was surprised and affected when I beheld her, on one occasion, seated on one of the kitchen chairs in the scullery, for coolness, hearing a company of little children of her tenants sing out their lessons to her. Her correspondence with Leadbeater was published in The LeadBeater Papers, 1861.Alfred Webb, Melesina Chenevix Trench, Compendium of Irish Biography, 1878, 535-536. English Poetry, 1579-1830, Center for Applied Technologies in the Humanities, Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University. Web, Dec. 23, 2016. Her beauty and simplicity won the hearts of the people. The same charm made her much sought after in society, but the frivolities of a "modish" life became more and more repugnant to her; and her letters represent more and more exclusively la vie intérieure. The absence of external facts and detail detracts to some extent from the interest of her correspondence. There are some interesting touches respecting Wellington, Jekyll, Mrs. Piozzi, Mrs. Fry, and Lord John Russell, but the references to the political society with which she mixed at Paris under the first empire are tantalisingly brief. No mean judge, Edward FitzGerald, to whom her son Richard submitted her letters and papers in manuscript, in a letter dated 3 July 1861 classes her letters with those of Horace Walpole and Robert Southey, praising them especially for their "natural taste and good breeding." Trench died at Malvern on 27 May 1827. Her husband survived her many years, dying at Botley Hill, Hampshire, aged 86, on 16 April 1860 (Gentleman's Magazine 1860, i. 640). At that date three of their children were surviving: Francis, Richard, and Philip Charles (1810–1888) of Botley. Writing Trench's writings comprise: ‘Mary Queen of Scots: An historical ballad; and other Poems’ (n.d. privately issued); ‘Campaspe, an historical Tale, and other Poems,’ Southampton, 1815, inscribed to her daughter; ‘Laura's Dream, or the Moonlanders,’ London, 1816, 8vo. All these were issued anonymously. Her poetry show the influence of Thomson, whose Seasons she greatly admired, and, among contemporary poets, of Byron and Samuel Rogers. Recognition Her son, poet Richard Chenevix Trench (who became archbishop of Dublin), edited her Remains, including her journal and correspondence, of which two editions appeared in 1862. A portrait engraved by Francis Holl from an oil painting by George Romney was prefixed to the Remains (1862). An oil portrait of her, called The Evening Star, was painted by Sir Thomas Lawrence. A miniature was executed by Jean-Baptiste Isabey at Paris in 1805. Another miniature by Hamilton was engraved by Francis Engleheart. Publications Poetry *''Mary Queen of Scots: An historical ballad; with other poems''. London: John Stockdale, 1800. *''Campaspe: An historical tale; and other poems''. Southampton, UK: printed by T. Baker, 1815. *''Ellen: A ballad; founded on a recent fact; and other poems''. Bath, UK: Cruttwell, 1815. *''Laura's Dream; or, The moonlanders''. London: J. Hatchard, 1816. *''Aubrey: In five cantos''. Southampton, UK: printed by T. Baker, 1818. *''Lines on Reading the Last Canto of Childe Harold''. Southampton, UK: printed by T. Baker, 1818. *''A Monody on the Death of Mr. Grattan''. London: C. Wood, for J. Ridgway, 1820. Non-fiction *''A Few Words on the Subject of the Slave Trade: Addressed to English women''. London: printed by J. Brettell, 1814. *''A Letter to a Member of Parliament: On the salt duties''. Southampton, UK: T. Baker, for I. Fletcher, 1818. *''Thoughts on Education''. Southampton, UK: T. Baker, for I. Fletcher, 181-? **also published as Thoughts of a Parent on Education: A new edition, with a preface and notes by the editor. London: 1837; Boston, MA: Northeastern University Women Writers Project, 2015. Collected editions *''The Remains of the Late Mrs. Richard Trench: Being selections from her journals, letters & other papers''. London: Parker & Bourne, 1862. *''Poems and Letters from her Journal''. Chawleigh, Devon, UK: Melesina Press, 1977. Letters and Journal *''Journal Kept during a Visit to Germany in 1799, 1800''. London: printed by Savill & Edwards, 1861. *Letters in Mary Leadbeater, The Leadbeater Papers: A selection from the mss. and correspondence. London: Bell & Daldy, 1862. Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy WorldCat.Search results = au:Melesina Trench, WorldCat, OCLC Online Computer Library Center Inc. Web, Dec. 23, 2016. See also *List of Irish poets References * Wikisource, Web, Dec. 23, 2016. Notes External links ;About * Trench, Melesina Category:1768 births Category:1827 deaths Category:19th-century poets Category:19th-century women writers Category:English-language poets Category:English poets Category:English women writers Category:Poets Category:Women poets